Black Manta
Legion of Doom Team Member (1977) appearance.]] 's The Adventures of Aquaman (1967) appearance.]] Black Manta is a supervillain. He is member of the Legion of Doom, and the archenemy of Aquaman. He takes his name from the fish species known as the manta ray. __TOC__ Background Information Continuity From Filmation series: The Adventures of Aquaman (1967) Black Manta has implanted an antenna device on top of the head of a killer whale. Using a brain-scramble on board his sea-saucer he drives the whale berserk, forcing it to attack Aquaman, Aqualad and Mera. After a brief battle, Manta falls down into a deep chasm where Aquaman and Aqualad leave him.As seen in The Adventures of Aquaman episode the Menace Of The Black Manta (1967). Continuity from Earth-One On the parallel-universe of Earth-One, there is no information regarding Black Manta as a youth. As an adult, this man would design a costume (primarily a black wetsuit with bug-eyed helmet that was able to shoot blasting rays from its eyes) and fashioned a high-tech submersible inspired by manta rays. Taking the name Black Manta, he and his masked army would became a force to be reckoned with. The fearsome Black Manta and Aquaman battled repeatedly over the next several years. During one of these clashes, it was revealed that Black Manta was actually an African American, whose stated objective at one point was for black people to be dominant in the ocean after having been oppressed for so long on dry land; even if it was a ruse to gain more followers.As revealed in [http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Adventure_Comics_Vol_1_452 Adventure Comics, Vol. 1 #452] (July, 1977), which can be found at the [http://dc.wikia.com DC Database]. His main goal was to defeat Aquaman and gain power for himself through the conquest of Atlantis. In late 1977, Black Manta kills Arthur Curry, Jr., Aquaman's son, which left Aquaman obsessed with revenge. Powers and Abilities *'Limited Degree of Expertise in Mechanical Engineering:' as he was able to manufacture his suit, weaponry, and vehicles *'Hand-to-Hand Combat Training' Equipment Black Manta's suit: is specifically designed to adapt him to an oceanic environment. *'Temperature Resistance:' The suit allows him complete resistance to the cold and pressure of deep sea conditions. *'Superhuman Durability, and Strength:' The suit allows Black Manta to lift/strike with the force of 5 tons. *'Water breathing ability:' It is not clear if the suit has a hidden oxygen supply or if it has the ability to extract oxygen from the water like the gills of a fish. *'Jet Boots:' The suit has jet-boots which function in or out of water. * Telepathic Scrambler: The suit is equipped with a telepathic-scrambler that is used to temporarily strip Aquaman of his aquatic telepathy. *'Laser Beams:' The eyes of helmet fires laser beams. * Various High-Tech Equipment * Various Array of Weapons: Such weapons include blades, electric blasts from wrist gauntlets, miniaturized torpedoes, and energy beams from his helmet. Weaknesses Not Known Transportation * Manta's Sea-Saucer Legion of Doom Team Members Episode Appearances Notes * Black Manta debuted in Aquaman vol.1, #35''Go to the [http://dc.wikia.com/wiki ''DC Database] for more on [http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Aquaman_Vol_1_35 Aquaman, Vol.1 #35] (October, 1967) (October, 1967). * He was created by Bob Haney and Nick Cardy. * Black Manta's first animated appearance was on the [[The Superman/Aquaman Hour of Adventure ‎| Aquaman animated series]] (a Filmation cartoon that premiered on CBS on September 9, 1967, and ended June 1970); in which he was also a featured as a regular villain. * Black Manta’s first appearance in the The All-New Super Friends Hour marks the unofficial first time that a DC supervillain appeared on Hanna Barbera’s Super Friends. * Interestingly, he did not go by Black Manta, he went by just 'Manta.' * In this appearance his suit color was olive brown. * His first origin was given in DC Comics Aquaman, Vol.4, #6''Go to the [http://dc.wikia.com/wiki ''DC Database] for more on [http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Aquaman_Vol_4_6 Aquaman, Vol.4 #6] (May, 1992) (May, 1992), by writer Shaun McLaughlin. It is part of the Modern Age / New Earth continuity. In this origin, the boy who would become Black Manta grew up in Baltimore, Maryland, and loved to play by the sea. As a youth he was kidnapped and sexually abused on a ship for an unspecified amount of time. At one point he apparently saw Aquaman with his dolphin friends and tried to signal him for help but was not seen. Finally, he was forced to defend himself, killing one of his tormentors on the ship with a knife. Hating the emotionless sea (and Aquaman, whom he saw as its representative), the boy was determined to become its master. * His second origin was given in DC Comics Aquaman, Vol. 6, #8''Go to the [http://dc.wikia.com/wiki ''DC Database] for more on [http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Aquaman_Vol_6_8 Aquaman, Vol.6 #8] (September 2003) (September 2003), by writer Rick Veitch. It is part of the Modern Age / New Earth continuity. In this origin, the boy who would become Black Manta was an orphan who has autism and was placed in Gotham City's Arkham Asylum. He felt comfortable in freezing cold water, while cotton sheets were excruciatingly painful. Because the attendants at Arkham didn't know how to deal with autism, they would end up restraining him to the bed as he struggled and screamed whenever they tried putting him there. The boy was also fascinated when he saw Aquaman on television. The boy would end up being subjected to experimental treatments. One treatment seemed to clear the boy's head, but left him violent as a result; he killed the scientist who had administered the treatment and escaped from Arkham. External Links * For more on Black Manta see article at Wikipedia * Devil Ray at The World's Finest * Black Manta at [http://aqua.gjovaag.com/ The Unofficial Aquaman Website] * For more on Black Manta see article at DC Database Appearances in Other Media References Category:Characters Category:Villains Category: Aquaman enemies Category:DC characters Category:1967